Not A Very Jolly Holiday
by snarechan
Summary: Demyx and Axel's current mission is super.


Not A Very Jolly Holiday

By Snare-chan

**Pairings**: None intended, but can be seen as Axel/Demyx**  
Ratings**: K+  
**Category(ies)**: Action/Adventure  
**Warning(s)**: None  
**Status**: One-shot, complete  
**Summary**: Demyx and Axel's current mission is _super_califragilisticexpialidocious.

**Notes**: Another story for the _Are You Game? _challenge community over on dreamwidth! Done for the prompt: _Axel/Demyx: friendship – stick with me; you'll be fine._ I actually had this finished before the March deadline (the prompt was originally submitted for December), but waited until I could submit the story to the community before posting this anywhere. Beta read by my trusty partner in grammar busting crime, Keppiehed.

**Disclaimer**: I dun own Kingdom Hearts; wish I did like everyone else. They should put KH in stock, then I'd buy it all!

* * *

Dogs were barking.

"View halloo!"

Bugles were blaring.

"Oh man, oh _geez_, this cannot be happening!" Demyx chanted under his breath in a panic.

He was on the move, pushing his long legs to be as quick and nimble as they could manage and leapt over hedges and fences as if running a hurdle race. The commotion was getting closer – the sound of rapid hoof beats joining the chase.

It'd started when he'd lost track of his partner, Axel, on this excursion to a place called _London Rooftops_, a remote world that was absolutely _lacking_ in buildings. Demyx wished he'd remained lost and anonymous. _Stay close to me_, the redhead had instructed him, _I'll do the dirty work if you'll do what I tell you._ They'd managed to keep track of each other for five minutes before Demyx lost sight of his colleague.

He'd run into a fox – or more accurately, a fox had run into _him_. It had leapt on him out of _nowhere_, getting fur and dirty paw prints on his black clothes and, consequently, its scent. A pack of hunting dogs were using that smell to track Demyx at that very moment. There were dozens of them – big ones with large, meat rendering teeth – intent on his trail, and for terrifying reasons, his portal summoning abilities weren't working. He could retaliate, but the point of this trip was observation. Demyx didn't want to blow his cover unless he had no other alternative; he didn't know if the natives were stronger than he was, and he didn't intend to find out.

So he ran, weaving and jumping over assorted greenery, but the canines kept coming and he was growing exhausted. A reprieve was concocted on the fly as he spotted a lake, the Nobody stumbling into it. Jacket hanging on his frame, he dove back under with a gasp as he heard the dogs incoming. Demyx swam, hoping the water would mask – or wash away entirely – his scent, along with that of the fox. He didn't stop until he reached the opposite side, his face peeking out up to his nose to allow himself to breathe and see his pursuers. Some dogs combed the water's edge with their noses close to the ground until they lost interest and bounded off; their howls grew faint, then inaudible.

He waited a several minutes to ensure they were truly gone, then pulled himself out of the lake on all fours. Tired, he removed his boots to drain them of the pond liquid that had seeped into them and wrung out his attire. During this process, he heard new sounds:

_Oh, it's a jolly holiday with you, Bert._

_Gentlemen like you are few._

_Though you're just a diamond in the rough, Bert,_

_Underneath your blood is blue!_

_You'd never think of pressing your advantage._

_Forbearance is the hallmark of your creed._

_A lady needn't fear when you are near,_

_Your sweet gentility is crystal clear!_

_Oh, it's a jolly holiday with you, Bert,_

_A jolly, jolly holiday with you!_

With a strangled "eep", Demyx ducked as low as he could to avoid being spotted by a serenading couple dressed in white and red and cowered in the shadows of a wooden bridge. He yanked his hood over his head to better disguise his face and waited until the people danced away. Crawling on hands and knees, Demyx used various shrubs, bushes and trees to escape to thicker cover. A tree trunk was his final destination, and he somersaulted the last few inches.

He permitted himself a moment to catch his breath. His heart was racing due to the numerous close calls and his sides protested the excessive activity. Idly, Demyx plucked leaves and briers sticking to him; the few in his hair caused him to whimper as he forced them free.

_The Organization doesn't pay me enough for this_, he thought bitterly. This felt unjustified, considering he lacked a salary, period. If Saïx wasn't so creepy-crazy or their Superior not, well…_superior_, Demyx would have demanded compensation and an immediate raise for services rendered. But living non-existentially – as opposed to not at all – prevented him from doing more than wishful thinking.

Finishing beautifying himself, Demyx tossed the foliage aside and curled in tighter on himself, giving the scenery a closer inspection. His previous cursory glance was to ensure that he was alone and safe; now he admired his peaceful surroundings. Luck had avoided him up to this point, so Demyx decided that he was due for a break. Perhaps, if he played his cards right – as Luxord would say – he could finish off this assignment without having to exert anymore energy. Axel had to be _somewhere_ contributing to their duty and finishing it up.

Relaxing into his makeshift hiding spot, he planned on waiting until his partner's return when a ruckus nearby alerted Demyx to company. In a matter of seconds he whipped out an arm and summoned a pillar of water in the direction of the noise. A verbal protest that sounded a _lot_ like someone he knew gave him pause, then steam billowed around the area of the forest and created a fog that almost blinded him.

A shock of green had Demyx press closer against the tree in alarm, until the rest of Axel's face came into view. His bright red hair seemed to glow in the vapor, before the airborne droplets dissipated.

"Was that _really_ needed?" Axel asked, petulant.

Demyx didn't mind and ran to him, relieved to see a semi-friendly face.

"My bad! I thought you were one of those dogs or show tune dancers. This place is filled with weird stuff – weirder than _Wonderland_," he told Axel, speaking in such a rush that some words jumbled together.

"Hey, chill for me, okay? Can you do that?"

He nodded, having the frame of mind to realize that when _Axel_ asked you to 'chill', you had best do as he said. Axel tilted his head, dislodging a couple droplets from his ear, and asked, "How about you start from the beginning and get me up to speed?"

Demyx began from the moment they were separated to when they reunited, and left out certain parts – or more like glossed over or glammed them up. Axel didn't _have_ to know he'd intended to sit out for the remainder of the mission, though Axel seemed to already sense as much. Thankfully, he didn't seem to care.

"You remembered all that, huh? Nice job," he said, when Demyx finished reciting his exploration. "Since we're stuck here, we might as well continue with our objective. Let's inspect this race track I found. And don't get lost."

"Yeah, like _that's_ on my agenda. Earlier, I was almost shot and hung on someone's mantle," Demyx grumbled, the sarcasm earning him a small grin from Axel.

Bushes rustled.

Axel's weapons manifested in both hands, seeming to burst from his fingertips in a plume of smoke and flame. He took point before Demyx even had a chance to summon his own tool, his sitar flowing into his grasp and strings still in the matter of forming. They braced for any threat…which turned out to be a conga line of penguins in matching black bowties.

"You're joking, right?" Axel deadpanned to no one in particular, face creasing into an open sneer as he absorbed the sight.

"At least they're sort of cute," Demyx intoned. He watched as they circled them, tidying up by shining their boots and serving them tea – all while tap dancing.

Axel tried to shake them off and demanded to be let alone, but Demyx sort of enjoyed the attention. When they were finished, they danced off without further notice.

"What was _that?_"

"Don't know, but check out my shoes! I can totally see my face in them," Demyx said, standing straight and admiring himself in the leather. "Won't everybody be surprised when they get a good look at my uniform in such great condition?"

"Yeah, that'll be a first," Axel said, dismissing his chakrams with a flick of his fingers, and grabbed Demyx by the upper arm. "We're making tracks for real this time; hopefully with no more interruptions."

They traveled through the forest, mindful not to get too close to the world activity, but paying close attention to useful details.

"Not a whole lot of Heartless here," Demyx noted, and by the noncommittal noise Axel made, he must have noticed, too. "But the planet's wide open – no way would they pass it up. Are they in hiding?"

"The magic is powerful here… It could be blocking them out," Axel surmised, rubbing his chin in thought. "Unlikely, though. It might keep out the weaker types, but the other members got a reading of a few _somewhere_."

"Maybe-" Demyx began, but faltered at the sight of four carousel horses coming their way.

He shoved Axel to the side, avoiding a large purple one that shot down the middle of where both of them had stood. Demyx got turned around and his front slammed into a blue one that had ridden up behind him. His body got caught and slumped over top of it, and he took a moment to get reoriented. He wheezed and pulled up a little higher, glancing backwards to see Axel situating himself on a fake, pink horse.

"I think I'm going to hurl," Demyx proclaimed, looking imploringly at Axel as his transportation arrived beside his. His partner grabbed him by the belt and tugged, helping him into a sitting position.

"Hold it together. It's free transit!" Axel said, laughing. "We'll be able to see the whole place faster this way."

There was no arguing with that logic, and Demyx struggled to get positioned. He settled for clinging to the carousel horse's wide neck and mane, and they raced partially around the track. Their progress only ended when it began to rain; the weather itself was not a hindrance, but to their surprise, the world began to blur. Demyx tugged the hood of his jacket back over his head and blinked the water from his eyes, but that didn't stop his vision from fading out of focus.

"Number IX, what-"

"Don't look at me! This isn't my fault," Demyx said, and with a jolt he felt his body being dropped off somewhere. He'd clenched his eyes shut due to the dizzying sensation, and when he opened them again…Axel and he were in a completely different location.

It was sort of dreary, but that could be on account of the weather. Rain poured from the sky, drenching anyone without proper precautions in place, and the two Organization members were only saved by their long raincoats. They were standing on a sidewalk with colored chalk drawings smeared at their feet. Lots of people surrounded them, but most were scurrying off to find cover from the onslaught. For the most part, they were ignored. Still, they scurried to hide, tugging their clothes close to their bodies to obscure their features and found a place to lie low.

"At least we found where the rooftops are," Demyx said, glancing at the numerous chimneys constructed on buildings built close together.

"Shh!" Axel hissed, wrapping an arm across his partner's front and inclining his head at a group of people that lingered.

There were four of them – two of which Demyx identified as the dancing couple he'd run across earlier. They were talking frantically about the artwork on the sidewalk, and he wondered what sort of magic it involved. Then the group was bustling off in the same fashion the other people had when the storm came, distracting Demyx from his musings. Axel pushed him back and they huddled closer together to integrate with the shadows, watching and waiting for them to pass.

When they were gone, Demyx sighed in relief and slumped against the other Nobody's arm. Axel leaned over, checking that they'd really gone, and then he, too, relaxed.

"We need to report," Axel said. "The Organization needs to know about this."

"All right, but I don't know where to begin explaining to them what just happened. Can we teleport again?"

Axel turned and raised an arm, palm flat, and there was a moment where nothing happened. Then a portal was summoned, darkness swirling and twisting together in winding tendrils.

"Woo!" Demyx cheered. "I'll be glad to never see this place again. Let's vamoose!"

He ran ahead, returning to the castle with a wealth of information to recount. Despite his reservation about finding a way to detail their journey, Demyx did most of the talking. Through all of it, Saïx listened with nary a change in expression. It didn't shift even when he informed them, _well done, now go back tomorrow and don't come back this time until the Heartless anomalies are discovered. _

Demyx _groaned_, and in a rare show of camaraderie, Axel gave him an empathetic pat on the back.

-Fin-


End file.
